Omar has 4 watermelons for every 12 coconuts. Write the ratio of watermelons to coconuts as a simplified fraction.
Solution: Ratios can be written in a few different ways that mean the same thing. You can express a ratio with a colon separating the two numbers. $4:12$ You can write it out as a phrase like this. $4 \text{ to } 12$ Or, you can express a ratio as a fraction. $\dfrac{4}{12}=\dfrac{1}{3}$ Therefore, $\dfrac{1}{3}$ is the ratio of watermelons to coconuts written as a simplified fraction.